87 TC - Interior lights will not shut off

Hello all, I'm new to the forum and have done quite a bit of searching both here and generally on the web but have not yet been able to locate information on how the interior lights are wired. I have a problem where all the interior (dome) lights are always on. This includes the dome, door courtesy, under dash and exterior door key hole lights. I have checked the 2 door plunger switches and they seem to be functioning properly as I see a slight light dim when the switched are depressed. Also, the door ajar light works properly when the door are open and when the doors are shut, the door ajar light goes off. I am under the impression that there is some sort of delay timer or module that may control the how long the lights stay on after the doors are shut. Or possibly there are additional switches in the door handles that activate the key hole lights.

For now, we have removed all the light bulbs except for the key hole lights so our battery does not die. but need to get this fixed so we can have interior lights again. Any help would be greatly appreciated!

Amar

Have you checked your fuses? I had a similar issue in another vehicle that ended up having a fuse with the wrong AMP installed.

You probably have already done this, but make sure your panel dim switch (the wheel switch next to the headlight switch on the dash, next to the door) is not rolled all the way up. You should be able to scroll it down and hear a *click*. If that doesn't turn off the lights, you may have a faulty switch. If you have autodim, the lights may stay on for a few seconds after even if the switch works.

FYI, the door ajar switch and "dome light" pin switch have nothing to do with each other. Door ajar switch is located in the door latch assy.

Assuming the light switch dimmer isnt set to "always on", pull the light switch and disconnect the electrical connector. If lights go out, replace the switch. If lights still on, pull both pin switches and and see if they are working correctly.

FYI, the door ajar switch and "dome light" pin switch have nothing to do with each other. Door ajar switch is located in the door latch assy.

Assuming the light switch dimmer isnt set to "always on", pull the light switch and disconnect the electrical connector. If lights go out, replace the switch. If lights still on, pull both pin switches and and see if they are working correctly.

First of all, thanks to everyone for your responses! The dimmer switch is not set to on, I just pulled off the headlight switch and tried and the dome light still stays on. Then while it was still out, I pulled out both door plunger switches and the dome light still stays on. now that I have seen the plunger switches, if for some reason they were bad, the symptom would be that the light would not come on (the door switches are a 3 prong that is only connected when the door is open). In my case, there is either another switch somewhere completing the circuit or there must be a timer module or relay of some sort that is not functioning properly.

Any more advice would be welcomed!

Are there switches inside the door handles that activate the keyhole and dome lights? is there a timer or relay somewhere that keeps the lights on for like 30 seconds or something?

Thanks again,

Amar

Do you have keyless entry?

It's been a long time since i messed with it, but do the light usually come on when you use the key to lock/unlock the car? I've never really paid attention to this, but if this was a feature on the 87's (i'll test mine in a minute) it could be the key cylinder is not lined up. BRB!

Ok definitely no cylinder ground, BUT there is a switch in the door handles themselves that may be stuck. Have you had any issues with your door handles sticking up>?

Do you have keyless entry?

Nope! no keyless entry on mine.

Ok definitely no cylinder ground, BUT there is a switch in the door handles themselves that may be stuck. Have you had any issues with your door handles sticking up>?

Thanks for checking, my door handles both seem to work fine. I tried to pull on them both and they seem to go back down fine.